We Are Home

 

Surgery Monday, out of bed Tuesday, discharged Wednesday, driven home Thursday, shopping Friday, and that was our week.

I had hopes of a few more days in Wellington, I didn’t get to go up Mt  Victoria for some panorama shots, none of the harbour or the waterfront looking south, or some more shopping.Never mind, lots of goodies, with batik and a wonderful smart phone. BUT, I have to  turn the call tones to a ring, rather than stay on silent!!! A few missed calls today… Sorry I could not put the blame on anything else.

Hugh is doing well, walking without crutches, and the pain is  very easily kept at bay.I am so thankful for this.

Driving home on Thursday, I thought about those still there in hospital, specially the ones who had come in by themselves, had few or no visitors, and a grim prognosis. Life can be so sad, difficult, and with so many reasons to wonder  why things happen.

Quotation of the day, author unknown

“ The best part of driving out the front gate, is knowing that you will return ”

Greetings from Jean

Blowin’ In The Wind

 

My border batik fabrics have been taken out, looked at, and put at the side of the Wiggle me quilt.I am still not sure about the new fern one, but the darker blue mottled one is definitely the very outer edge

A bit windy here today, after overnight rain.

Our motel is almost directly across the road from Wellington Regional Hospital, and the Rescue Helicopter lands on the top landing area often. It goes overhead at all hours. There will be many families who are so very thankful for this wonderful life-saving service.

You can see the wind sock at the very right hand side, and I could hear the rotors a long time before the chopper was visible. Then it turned and flew almost directly overhead, as I was on the footpath.

Julie, at My Quilt Diary, I thought of you, as one time you cycled down the road to hang your quilt on a fence for the photos. I walked out the door, and here was a suitable fence, at the side of where the cars park.

Breaking news, Hugh has been discharged, 2 days post-surgery!!! We will travel home tomorrow. I have not done much that was on “ The List”, but with batiks, and today a marvellous new “Samsung Smart Phone” a family and friend birthday gift, I am happy.Yesterday when I walked out to the front door after visiting, I met a lady who was there with her husband on Monday morning, there were a lot of people in the  pre-surgery admission room.  We went back inside and talked. How can an instant friendship be there, we hugged, had tears, of relief and togetherness, and shared a bond .I think of them both as they face the future, with hope, faith, and a little uncertainty.

Again, you have  all kept me in your hearts and thoughts, and this has been in my mind  these days. We have seen others in dire situations, wives here alone, men facing surgery complications, young children in wheelchairs going up in the lift, maybe to the theatre floor.

Quotation of the day  from Adam Lindsay Gordon

Life is mostly froth and bubble,
Two things stand like stone,
Kindness in another's trouble,
Courage in your own.

Greetings from Jean

I found a batik fabric shop!!!,

 

Today has seemed to be a lot longer than  24 hours. I  woke before 4 a.m., knew I had to be up at 5 a.m. breakfast finished by 6 a.m. and over the road at 10.30 a.m.

We have just visited Hugh, at 7.15 p.m.  he has  finally been transferred to the ward, from PACU, ( Post anaesthesia care unit)  there might have been an emergency, so not sure if his theatre time was delayed. The staff are wonderful, superb care, and I hope to know more tomorrow.

Your thoughts, prayers, caring wishes and more have stayed close to me all day. Thank you so much.

Between inquiring phone calls, a cafe lunch, a wee rest, we found a fabric shop. Batiks galore, in Kilburnie. But tomorrow there is another one to visit, in Lower Hutt, and now today is over, June, I will call you tomorrow, and hope we get to meet.

This wasn’t the shop ( photo  courtesy of internet), but as wonderful.

 

Quotation of the day, author unknown,

“True friends are with you always,  beyond distances, beyond words, beyond time”

Greetings from Jean

Windy Wellington

 

Down here the Capital has lived up to its reputation,very windy yesterday, and more so this morning at 5 a.m. Breakfast is all done and dusted, how can I have that wonderful second coffee, when all Hugh can do is watch?

No words to say how we feel this morning, but your words, thoughts of love and support, prayers, words to the universe, mantras, standing under a tree and sending positive powers, and so much more, I thank each one of you from my heart. All this  will be with me today as I wait. Surgery is at 12.30, we have to arrive at 10.30,  probably get a taxi for the few minutes walk, so much easier.

A photo from one of Hugh’s days in the bush.

I am sure there will be lots of photo shots the next few days.

Quotation from  an unknown author,

“I don’t know the road I am walking on,

I have friends by my side at every step”

Greetings from Jean

The Wiggle-me-sew-along quilt

 

I am so thrilled that the top is almost finished, I need borders to be added, and hope to find batiks this week. I did  some PP, with a frame,   2 colours to see if this might suit, and have so many strips left, am inspired to do another, maybe with dark deep green as the background. On the Facebook group, there are so many stunning  combinations, and very talented quilters who have chosen  beautiful fabric and colours.

I can see I needed to have more coat hangers at the outside corners. Where the pale colour is, I think I will use narrow strips of all the colours, then a final dark border.

Strips galore left over.

Maybe the paler green for the first border, a very narrow original deep blue, then purple,  a lot narrower than this, I left the fabric laid out to show the cats  .But looking at this, the deep green ferns look good too.

Wellington City, we will be there later today, and I hope to get some photos  round and about, some fabric shopping, and some sleep and rest. Photo courtesy of the internet.

Quotation of the day from Zoe  Zantamata

“ Taking time to do nothing

often brings everything into perspective”

Greetings from Jean

Motivated Like Never Before

 

The batik fabric was chosen, cut into strips, joined to the background blue, sewn together, then the rows all sewn in sequence!!! Wow, I do not think I have EVER completed something/anything, even part of  anything… in such a short time. I didn’t even need that “ Round Tuit” that my Dad gave me so many years ago.

I struggled to find a flat place large enough for a photo, so it is on a slant, as I had to stand on the settee. I still need to add a border, or maybe 2 borders, so the voting is open for all suggestions.  I do not have enough of the original blue, so need to bring in another fabric. Please see the “maybe”choices below, but a friend on the Wiggle Me group has suggested a dark navy, then using the left overs from the colours, strips of them, then a chosen edging at the very outside. This would make it the perfect size for our bed, as Hugh already has his eye on it.

He suggested we have it on our bed tonight!!!

Choice #1…Left hand side, variegated green with wavy gold lines, Choice #2…right hand side purple, with cats outlined in another shade.

Choice #3…Cats, with a narrow inset of blue the same as the quilt blocks.

Choice #4…Left hand side, the pale green, and Choice #5… right hand side, a NZ fabric with dark green ferns

 

Choice #6…This one has another blue that has white patterns on it.

And naturally, as happens up at Linda’s place in Taupo, no quilt is complete without a CAT scan.

I will be happy with all and any suggestions to finish this, but meantime it is hanging in the wardrobe, for further attention after our Wellington visit.

To those who have asked, we  drive down on Sunday, Hugh’s spinal surgery is Monday afternoon, I will be at a motel across the street,  only 2 minutes walk. Norman will be here at our home, so the fires will be burning, cats will be fed, ( Joyce’s dept.) maybe even the lawn will get mown.I am so thankful for all  your wishes and caring thoughts. Our younger daughter is flying up from Dunedin on the Monday, so I will not be there by myself. , and older daughter is phoning every night. I am so thankful for them both, always, but specially right now. Family love is like no other. And when we live a fair distance away from each one, phone calls and emails, and comments on my blog or Facebook page are special. There is  Wifi where we are staying, so I hope to be able to post news as it happens.

And maybe some photos of Wellington,Mt Victoria, Te Papa, ( Museum of New Zealand), and naturally a quilt  fabric shop at least once!! And I am hoping to catch up with an old friend, from days at Lake Tarawera,  and June, from Junezscrapz  as well.

Quotation of the day, author unknown

“Good things come to those who believe,

better things come to those who are patient,

and the best things come to those who don’t give up”

Greetings from Jean

Counting the days

 

The “ Wiggle me sew-a –long” is coming on well, all strips  pinned, then sewn , waiting to be ironed and joined  in their rows. The table is not wide  enough and way too short, but I am happy with how it looks. These are only pinned in each row.

I will have to ask for suggestions for the border, as there isn’t blue to go round each edge. Maybe a darker blue to offset the brightness, and show up the other colours. Naturally Boris had to supervise.    He needs to have reading lessons, last week went to the vet for his castration. Came home with an A4 page of details, and instructions for his first few nights after surgery.

“Keep him warm and quiet, and inside.” No excitement or exertion , does that mean no running at top speed up the hall, into every room,looking  out of every window longingly at the outdoors??? The next day, cat door was opened early and out he went. One more visit in 4 weeks for the final vaccination.

He is turning out to be a very expensive adoptee, as the week before  we had an emergency vet visit, he was “FLAT” and looked so poorly.  PUO, or fever of unknown origin, 40.1 and climbing, so 2 injections, home with a syringe to drip feed fluids. Not eating, not drinking, not doing anything at all.

Next morning better, so we were very  thankful.

Weight now 2.25 kg, so he has come a long way from the tiny 670gm arrival on 6th May.

Wellington is getting closer, apprehension slipping into my mind unasked. City clothes are sorted, haircut done,  and all I need to do is fill the suitcase, pack laptop and camera, and make sure the check list is all checked.

My dear blog friend  KB in Colorado had a huge scare with her beloved dog R, an emergency vet visit, then by animal ambulance to  Colorado State Vet School, where he was treated, for a possible toxin poisoning. This seemed doubtful, as he had not been off-leash outside for a few days.  An overnight stay, now home, and daily checks for any on-going symptoms. KB acknowledged the huge support from her blog friends, and all of us in Blogland know so well when we share our joy, sorrow, successes and failures, you are there to send love, prayers, help, support, and caring words.

So my quote reflects on how valued all our friendships are .

Quotation of the day from  Marcus  Tullius  Cicero

“ Friendship improves happiness

and abates  misery,

by the doubling of our joy

and the dividing of our grief”

Greetings from Jean

A Day Out, and another project???

 

Do I not have enough to do in the next 10 days, without taking on a challenge?? There is an online Sew-a-long, called Wiggle Me Colourful, you can visit it here.  Click to follow the link.

Wiggle me colourful

I have joined, chosen the batiks, ironed, cut, and sorted. This is a huge project for me, as we have 10 days before going to Wellington!!! But I always do best under pressure, so here  is the first step .

5 sets of strips, colour graded, in green, blue, lemon/orange/pink/ then teal and purple/mauve.  The background fabric is a rich deep blue.

Here is the  finished quilt  from Sandy W ( courtesy of the internet) but as I am using fabric in my stash, and not a jelly roll, mine will be  slightly different.

The other day Hugh suggested a day out, to find some snow. We drove and drove, 2 hours, and it was always round that next elusive corner. Farmland on the way, and some patches of where  a heavy frost lingered on the banks by the roadsides.

 

If you look very hard, there is a small patch of snow, centre back, a long way away.

 

Hay bales on the roadside, wrapped in plastic. What was wrong with the older oblong bales, a one-man lift weight, using an ordinary farm trailer? No need for something fancy, that unrolls them, and the plastic to dispose of? Deer fence netting all in this area, but they were a long way back.

At home we had a  New Zealand native pigeon . or Kereru, staying a while in the Elm Tree.

Quotation of the day, from C S Lewis

“ You are never too old to set another goal

or to dream a new dream”

Greetings from Jean

Can I wear these in Wellington?? NO..NO..NO..

 

We will be in Wellington on 26th July, and already I am realising I need to be dressed in something smarter than ‘ CASUAL”,  comfortable, or working gear. Goodbye to the gumboots, swandri, and homemade hat!!!

Many thanks for all birthday wishes, compliments and good wishes,  but it isn’t until 25th July. I needed to have my new driving license at least 3 weeks before then, in case of any hold-ups with the processing. It arrived in 4 days!!!  So no celebrations until we return home, then maybe a party with Joyce, ( her day is 20th) and other friends who also are  Leos.

 

I have started to adjust already with a wonderful haircut, and good clothes have been sorted.

Hannah    ……        this is what we have to water a huge area. Drag the hose out, have a gentle curve at the  start, put the front narrow wheels over the hose, and the force of the spray propels it back to the tap end. A huge saver in time and  effort. We originally had a Pope model, but this seems to be fool proof, and very sturdy. Photo and data off the internet.

 

The Solid Metal Travelling Sprinkler is ideal for extra large lawns. Durable construction with a heavy duty cast iron body. Self – propelled 2 speed gearbox. The Front wheels travels the path of the garden hose. Weave hose to follow any pattern you need. Superior water distribution for use with 12mm & 18mm garden hose. Can travel up to 60m and will water an area up to 1,100m2. Full circle coverage from 4.5m to 13.5m diameter.

Quotation of the day, from Mark Twain

 

“Clothes make the man.

Naked people have little or no influence on society.”

Greetings from Jean

Procrastination has been abolished !!!

 

I am the original “ Black Belt” in putting things off until the very last minute.However, now Hugh has been given a date for his surgery, I am motivated like never before to finish sewing, tidy cupboards, clean windows, and have all paperwork done to the last full stop.

 

How do all things happen at the same time?

I passed my medical for license renewal, this is compulsory when you reach 75!!! ; the new license will arrive any day, I have been issued with a temporary one meantime.  Several friends  also have their birthdays  in July, one party invitation already, a lunch for another, phone calls and a card or two for those further away. Then  we travel to Wellington, and surgery is on Monday 27th July. Suddenly, it is all systems go!!!

Apprehensive, worried, relieved, and thankful the wait is not longer. We have already had one phone call, with the time to be there on that morning. Motel is booked, travel plans arranged,  and lots of little things here are in the diary…. to be finished,tidied, cleaned, organised , and all done by then. At home, everything is planned  for smooth sailing, Norman will take over the day-to-day duties of firewood,and more, Joyce will be on cat feeding  duties,  and combined they will be a great team.

My Dad would be so proud of me, as many years ago he gave me  one of these. He knew me so well.

 

Quotation of the day, author unknown

“Procrastination is the enemy of time.

Delay and that time is gone, do it today

and you will have more time tomorrow to

procrastinate all over again”

Greetings from Jean